Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We will keep the Deputy in the picture because it is an important point. Today's witnesses and Professor FitzGerald are saying the same thing about education attainment, young people with talent not staying in the North and wages being lower because jobs are poorly paid because people are not highly skilled. That is the point that Professor FitzGerald made. People with a higher grade of third level education get much more attractive salaries elsewhere. That means these people are not working in Northern Ireland. I am trying to find agreement notwithstanding the academic powerful arguments on both sides, and a key issue on which we can all agree is the education process has to change. The political process has to change. People have to be educated to understand and embrace this. This is the part for politicians. The question of what it will cost is a very clear definitive issue. Some people say it will cost a lot more than others. Unless we get the ground moving and get young people involved in changing the education system, no matter what we do nothing will happen other than a continuation of the same. Is that not the reality?